After saying goodbye to a very traveler 2018 and with a last, unexpected and wonderful trip to Egypt, we started 2019 with the idea that the first part of the year would be very quiet. Why? Because at the end of January I had to go to the operating room and needed to rest and recover. I operated on January 22 and I think that about 10 days later we already had the tickets for the first great trip of the year ... If we CANNOT stand still!
In the end, what was going to be a very quiet year, has become one of the most traveling years of our lives. But it is worth with spoilers! Here we record, as is tradition and so that our bad memory in the future does not play a trick on us, our traveler summary of the year 2019!
We started 2019 separately, Rober with his family in the Pyrenees and I with my family in Friuli. But soon we were together again, in Vera Playa (Almería), where we stayed when we are in Spain (that is, very little XD). I already told you: at the end of January I had to operate and after spending a few days in the hospital (everything went well, even the food seemed rich) I returned home and zas! purchased flight. Whereee?
At the end of February we flew to Milan, where we spent some very good days in that often forgotten Italian city, before heading to Cinque Terre and Genova, an area that we still did not know and loved. We also went to my house and taking advantage of our next plane leaving Venice, we returned to the city of the canals (and, of course, we went on the road to Cicchetti).
And it was time for one of the great trips of the year: the tickets we bought were to fly to Colombia! It was our first time in South America and we have to say that we premiered in style, because we liked the country very much. Due to the operation we did not want to “exaggerate” so “we only” visited Bogotá, the Coffee Axis, Medellín (where I had another visit to the hospital after a good scare :-p), San Andrés and Cartagena.
We left wanting to explore the country further and we are sure that, sooner or later, we will return. If you feel like going to Colombia, go. Do not hesitate 😉
After a relaxing week in Cartagena, we put the booty on a new plane and flew to our favorite city: New York. We stayed there a little table and it was a pa-sa-da, in fact we left wanting more and with the desire to live a season in New York. We were able to get to know Manhattan much better and explore Queens and Brooklyn neighborhoods more thoroughly.
In those days we had the visit of our brother-in-law Giaco, who brought a super notion: we were going to be uncles again! Aiiiins, Marcos, what do you want to win?
We leave behind (not without much pain) the city that never sleeps and we get on a train called “Maple Leaf”, to reach our new destination: Canada. In a little table we saw emblematic places like Niagara Falls, Toronto, Montreal, Quebec, Vancouver and we rented a car to get lost in one of the most amazing landscapes in the world: the Rocky Mountains.
It was certainly one of the trips of the year: we saw dozens of bears, we ate poutine a few times and we did not agree on what we think is the best city to live in Canada (Rober is #teamToronto me #teamVancouver), but yes We both agree that the country of maple syrup is a great travel destination.
June: Oregon andSan Francisco
We returned to the United States. The first stop was a city that always caught our attention: Seattle, and we were not disappointed. From there we rented a car and toured much of Oregon and the coast of California, until we reached San Francisco. Here we spent 2 weeks doing an exchange of houses and taking care of a 19 year old cat (we are always touched by old cats :-p). I also took advantage of “the closeness” and I went to see one of my best friends, Nancy, who lives in Las Vegas and met her wonderful daughter, Martina * _ *
In June it was also when we returned to Europe. Barcelona was the city chosen to spend a week before "separating" a few days: Rober went to Sigüenza with his family and I to my house in Fagagna.
This month we spent it in Bedar, a small town very close to Cabo de Gata, making housesitting in a casoplon that our brother-in-law renamed "Bedar Hills". Piscinote infinity, little garden and so much tranquility (and even more currele) were the common denominators of the month. But they were also family days (we celebrated the first birthday of our nephew Iago) and of staying with friends (hello Jairo, hello Claudia) 😉
We had been going around a destination for a while: Russia, and August was the chosen month (badly chosen) to get to know its two most emblematic cities. Obviously we talk about Moscow and St. Petersburg. We fell in love (especially Moscow) but don't go to Russia in August! Aibaaaa how much tourism :-p Much better to go in May or September, for sure. Or if you are of the brave… December! We leave Russia knowing that we will return (sooner or later we will get on that Transmongolian).
We took the trip to get to know the other Baltic capitals: Helsinki, Tallinn, Riga and Vilnius and we have to say it was a very, very handsome trip!
After passing through Sigüenza and catching up with the blog (alias: write to sack) :-p we went to a new destination that, inexplicably, we still did not know: Morocco. We knew that we would like it, if we are chaotic and exotic sites, that is clear, and indeed: Morocco loved it. We made a roadtrip from Marrakech to Fes, passing through wonderful places like Ait Ben Haddou, Erg Chigaga or Erg Chebbi. A trip quite concentrated but in which we do not include other parts of Morocco, so we have a few reasons to return.
From Fez we flew to Treviso, and again in Italy we spent a few days in my house, between pizzas and preparations. Preparations for what? To go to India and Maldives with my parents! Traveling to India has always been my father's dream and the Maldives made my mother tilin, so we decided to take advantage and make a 2 × 1 1
In 2013/2014 we spent 3 months in India, normal that the 15 days we spent this time knew us little, but it was a very nice reunion. We pass through Delhi, Mandawa, Jodhpur, Pushkar, Jaipur, Agra and Varanasi, before taking a flight (well, two :-p) to Male.
In Maldives we met 4 new islands: Maafushi, Gulhi, Huraa and Dhiffushi and we went back to check that no, it is not necessary to sell a kidney to know that destination (here is the proof).
November was the month that saw us return to one of our homes in the world: Thailand. We do not know what this country has (let's see, the rich and cheap food helps a lot) but it has us hooked. Before approaching Chiang Mai, where we will stay until mid-January, we spend a week in northern Vietnam.
Who has been following us for a long time knows that Vietnam was not our favorite destination in Asia: the month we spent there a few years ago was a disaster! We lost a backpack with 2 cameras, we were robbed of a motorcycle -_-, we had a cold cold and no, we didn't want to return. But this second time was much better: we enjoyed as children of Hanoi and returned to one of the most magical places in Southeast Asia, Halong Bay.
Ains Chiang Mai of my loves. Here we are happy, every day trying a new restaurant (well, we often repeat in some that we already have well signed), turning around with the motorcycle (trying to dodge the police controls), visiting temples and looking for corners full of roll (there are many for here). Chiang Mai is our second home and, although it is true that there is more and more rock and change € / Baht is fatal -_-, because we are still in love with it. What can we do?
We will end the year here, a great traveling year 🙂
What does the 2020? The new decade for us is going to start with a trip to a destination we already know: Japan, but this time to get to know its other side (the cold and white snow). The adventures do not end here ... Stealing in February will travel to Myanmar and lety to South Korea (where we will meet again in mid-March) Y And then? Then we open a horizon of alternatives, but we will have to wait to see ...
What traveler plans do you have for 2020?
* Our other traveling years:
- 2018 Summary
- 2017 Summary
- 2016 Summary
- 2015 Summary
- 2014 Summary
